Intercontinental Project D
by twentyninerr1
Summary: It's Project D's final month of racing and Ryosuke is thinking big. What would it be? CHECK IT OUT
1. Chapter 1: Ambition

Intercontinental Project D

An Initial D Fanfiction

Background: It's Project D's last month of racing. The Takahashi brothers are thinking about a leap of faith. Therefore, they gather all of Project D's members into an impromptu meeting at a fast-food restaurant.

CHAPTER 01: AMBITION

Local fast-food restaurant, 18.00

Five cars are parked neatly in the restaurant's parking lot. They're Takumi's racing-engined AE86, Takahashi Brothers' RX-7, and two Toyota HiAce, which are Project D's support vehicle. Inside, Ryosuke talks about what seems to be a serious ambition for Project D's last shot.

"We're now on our last month of racing. We don't have much time left. To expand Project D's professionality we have to flutter our wings of professionality. We've conquered the whole nation, and I've been thinking of overseas expansion" Ryosuke said.

"Just don't bring us to USA. I don't want to challenge posers" Keisuke replied.

"That's why I want to brought us somewhere else" Ryosuke replied back.

"Come on, where? China? South Korea?" Keisuke asked in both curious and underestimating his brother's mind.

"Nope. We'll fly to Europe, the land of ultra-high performance cars and some of world's most challenging and scenic roads" Ryosuke replied.

"Uh… Europe? I don't think my Eight-Six will be enough for competing against European performance cars" Takumi complained pesimistically.

"Don't worry Takumi, I'll help you" Ryosuke replied.

"Can you explain the route of our road trip?" Fumihiro asked.

"We'll start from the Dunsfold Aerodrome in the UK for our shakedowns, move to the Isle of Man for our first race against my English colleagues, then on to France where we'll race at the Verdon Gorge. After that, we'll take a rest at the world famous Monaco while trying out the Circuit de Monaco with some friends of mine, and to wrap it up, we'll go to Italy, a Southern Europe country best known for its desirable cars and challenging mountain passes" Ryosuke explained.

"What about the cars?" Tomiguchi asked.

"Because Europe offers better gasoline than here, we can modify and tune our cars for maximum performance. My suggestion is, modify our cars to about 380hp, to face some super-sports car upon arrival" Ryosuke replied.

"What about Takumi?" Tomiguchi asked again.

"I'll sort it out later on" Ryosuke replied.

"Oh yeah, we have about two weeks of preparation, so make sure to do your best in practicing" Ryosuke added, concluding the meeting.

Several days later…

Fujiwara Tofu Shop, 07.00…

"Takumi?" Bunta called. It's rather unusual Bunta calls his son in the morning. But, when he does, it usually mean something important.

"What's going on, Dad?" Takumi asked.

"Your friend Ryosuke said that you and his team are going to Europe, and he told me that you may need a more powerful car than the Eight-Six. Since you've been skillful in driving both the Eight-Six and Impreza, I'll give you my Impreza, but, after Masashi tweaks it a bit" Bunta said.

"Tweak it? What do you mean, Dad? Isn't it powerful enough with 280hp under the hood?" Takumi asked.

"Don't be silly, son. Europe has many of the world's highest-performing cars. They have enormous power and great overall performance. Obviously, you need more than just 280hp" Bunta said while loading Takumi's Eight-Six with a fresh batch of tofu for his delivery.

On his way to Lake Akina, while delivering the tofu, Takumi was confused about 'tweaking' the Impreza. He wondered if his dad installed a new engine to prepare the Impreza for the European tour. Meanwhile, at Masashi Suzuki's garage, Takumi's thoughts happened.

"Are you sure it's the right kind of engine?" Bunta asked.

"Certainly. GT300 specification, may seem small amount of power, but should be enough to take on European performance machines. I'll also upgrade the car extensively" Masashi said.

"Fine then. When will it finished?" Bunta asked.

"Five days from now" Masashi replied assertively. After Bunta left him, Masashi started working on his Impreza, while in the gas station, the Akina Speed Stars guys, hearing that Project D will go on a trip to Europe, were baffled because the news.

"Are you serious about that?" Iketani asked.

"Yeah, I'm serious. But I won't drive my Eight-Six" Takumi replied.

"Well, that was also shocking. What car will you drive?" Iketani asked.

"My dad's Impreza. But, it's currently being prepared for the trip, but I'm not certain what kind of preparation" Takumi replied. Hearing the news, the Boss joins in.

"A European road trip with Project D? What an ambitious project you had, kid" the Boss said.

"Yeah, it's Ryosuke who proposed that. He made Dad lent his Impreza for me, but after he did some preparations" Takumi said.

"I think I know what Bunta is saying. I saw him driving the Impreza to Masashi earlier today. He's probably going to convert the Impreza to a performance machine better than your Eight-Six. I think he's installing a rally engine" Boss said.

"A touring car engine?" Takumi asked with confusion.

"Yeah, those engines with misfiring system and used in race cars. Somehow, Masashi managed to get one of those" Boss replied. After the talk, and several hundred motorists later, Takumi went home as usual, only to notice that his dad wasn't home.

"Dad? Are you there?" Takumi asked. Takumi is once again confused. First, he didn't know what his dad's saying of 'tweaking the Impreza', and second, he wasn't home at these hours. Nevertheless, Takumi decided to sleep, because it's a rare opportunity to have early sleep hours.


	2. Chapter 2: The Blue Devil

CHAPTER 02: THE BLUE DEVIL

Five days later, Mt. Akina, 11.00…

A loud roaring voice, with backfire sound is heard throughout the Mt. Akina pass. It's very unusual, even for locals such as Iketani and Kenji, who were birdwatching there. While they were birdwatching, a blue Impreza stopped by.

"Mr. Fujiwara? What are you doing here?" Kenji asked.

"I'm testing my newly upgraded Impreza. Want to take a look?" Bunta offered. The boys agreed and taking a look at the stripped cabin, complete with race-spec instruments and its new engine: the GT300 variant of Impreza's EJ20 engine which has a (limited) 300hp and plenty of torque.

"The engine looks different. Was it from the Impreza race car?" Iketani asked.

"That's correct, young man. 300hp, sequential gears, great amount of acceleration and FR system conversion. Takumi will be impressed with this.

"Um… Isn't your son prefer drift than grip?" Kenji asked.

"He's accustomed to both driving styles, so adapting to this is not a big deal for him" Bunta replied. He then returns to his car and fled, leaving only backfire flames to Kenji & Iketani. Meanwhile, back in the tofu shop, Bunta gave some advice to Takumi.

"Takumi, this car has a sequential gearbox. Pull the lever back to change up, and push the lever forward to change down. It's a common system in race cars. Go take it for a spin to get used to it. And, oh yeah, it has 6 gears instead of 5" Bunta said wisely. Then, Takumi leaves and drives to adapt with the newly-modified Impreza.

"It feels different than my car. It has higher amount of acceleration and grip. I shouldn't force it to drift then" Takumi said. So, Takumi continued testing his dad's Impreza, with grip driving style, rather than drift, although the Impreza has already converted to FR. Meanwhile, back with the brothers, who also testing their cars, Keisuke was very impressed with his FD RX-7, although it wasn't overly modified, and so did Ryosuke. Although Ryosuke's car wasn't as aerodynamic as his younger brother's FD, but he found out that it was enough for him (except the stickers which weren't too stylish, according to European modification styles). As for the mechanics, they're currently studying the technical requirements of European streets and tracks, and also hunting infos about European cars. Looking at how European cars perform through many videos from car reviews to races, makes Fumihiro, Kenta and Tomiguchi astonished.

"Project D will face many ultra high performance cars later" Kenta said.

"They call it supercar there, Kenta" Fumihiro replied. Back at the tofu shop, Takumi reported his test drive results to his father.

"The Impreza… It's way faster than my Eight-Six" Takumi said.

"That's not shocking to me. It's way faster because it has 60 more horsepower than the Eight-Six, and the transmission is also special" Bunta replied. Takumi, without much knowledge about what his dad said, only nodded. Meanwhile, thousands of kilometers away in Europe…

ISLE OF MAN TT ROAD COURSE SECTION, ENGLAND

Three cars are seen speeding through Isle of Man's TT road course section. They are a DTM-converted BMW M3 E30 with 330hp, a Lotus Evora with 360hp modification, and a Porsche 996 GT3 with its factory spec of 380hp. The three cars stopped not long after because of torrential rain, and the drivers shelter in a local diner.

"What cars will we face later?" the BMW driver asked.

"Two Mazda RX-7 and a mid-1980s Toyota Corolla" the Lotus driver replied.

"Our cars are no match for them!" the Porsche driver exclaimed with much pride.

"Don't be too happy. All of the cars are properly modified. The RX-7 duo have more than 340hp, while the Corolla houses a racing engine and a lightweight body. Rumors say that it weighs just below 900kg" the Lotus driver interrupted while sipping his cup of hot Darjeeling tea.

Back in Japan, things are pretty much the same, as the boys are testing their cars, but at different location: the Fuji Speedway. They test their cars there to see ther cars' limits, which could be evident in racetracks like Fuji Speedway.

FUJI SPEEDWAY, JAPAN…

A typical bellow of Wankel rotary engine is heard clearly through the montainous surroundings of Fuji Speedway. The Takahashi brothers are testing their cars, which now have longer gears, removed speed limiter, and an unlimited digital speedometer and gear shift indicator.

"247km/hour… I think I can do more" Ryosuke said. His car's RPM already hit 7.500, still a bit far from the (increased) limit of 8.500rpm. He pressed the throttle to its max, and recorded a speed of nearly 265km/h. Keisuke, who had already tested his FD before, only smoked his cigarette while looking at his critical-minded brother with the white van men Tomiguchi, Fumihiro and Kenta.

"I don't understand why Ryosuke continuously evaluate his own car" Kenta said.

"So do us" Tomiguchi and Fumihiro replied. Then, out of the blue, Ryosuke stopped because his brakes start to fade.

"The brake needs to be changed. Composite material would be OK for it" Ryosuke said calmly. The boys, without any word to say, only nodded.

Several days after the testing sessions…

Departure day, Narita International Airport

"Attention for passengers of Japan Airlines flight 086, please go to the departure terminal" an announcement said. The three racers pull their luggages and make their way to the departure terminal. But then, Takumi's trip was halted by his friend, Natsuki.

"Takumi!" Natsuki shouted.

"Come on Natsuki, what else?" Takumi asked with irritated feeling. Natsuki didn't say anything, but gave him a Subaru keychain.

"Um, thanks, Natsuki. I gotta go now" Takumi said.

"Have a safe trip, Takumi" Natsuki replied while holding her tears. Feeling sad, Takumi gave Natsuki a hug, during which, Natsuki cried on Takumi's shoulders. After the hug, Takumi rejoined the boys and wait at the departure terminal for several minutes, until their plane, a Boeing 787, arrived at the terminal. After hearing another announcement, the team enters the plane to begin the ultimate journey of Project D.


End file.
